This study examined narrative and argumentative essays written over the course of a 4-month semester by 37 students of English as a second language (ESL). The essays were analyzed for development ...over time and for genre differences. The goal of the study was to conceptually replicate previous studies on genre differences (e.g., Lu, 2011) and on short-term linguistic development in the areas of syntactic complexity, accuracy, lexical complexity, and fluency (e.g., Connor-Linton & Polio, 2014). In addition, the authors wanted to investigate whether native speakers exhibited similar genre differences in order to determine if die ESL students' genre variations were developmental or related to functional differences between the genres. The results indicate strong genre differences in the area of linguistic complexity. There were limited changes over time on most measures and a notable lack of development in the area of accuracy. Parallel data from native speakers show genre variation on some but not as many of the measures. Although this study was motivated by research design concerns, it also has implications for theory (e.g., the source of genre differences) and pedagogy.
There has been an increasing concern on teachers' adoption of information and communication technology (ICT) in their teaching practices. However, little has been explored about English as a second ...language (ESL) teachers' ICT adoption. This study synthesizes the technology acceptance model (TAM), the value-expectancy theory, and a learning perspective to propose a model -for investigating ESL teachers' continuance intention to use ICT in teaching. In the proposed model, motivational beliefs, ICT learning behaviors, facilitating conditions, and perceptions towards ICT use were put together to see how they worked together to influence continuance intention. Participants were 156 primary school ESL teachers in Hong Kong, who attended a teacher professional development program. Structural equation modeling showed that ICT self-efficacy and facilitating conditions were positively associated with continuance intention through perceptions (i.e. perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness). ICT anxiety had a negative effect, whereas interest had a positive effect on continuance intention. Growth mindset had a positive effect on continuance intention through learning of ICT (i.e. adaptive help seeking). Implications for teachers' professional development programs are discussed.
Second language assessment is ubiquitous. It has found its way from education into questions about access to professions and migration. This volume focuses on the main debates and research advances ...in second language assessment in the last fifty years or so, showing the influence of linguistics, politics, philosophy, psychology, sociology, and psychometrics. There are four parts which, when taken together, address the principles and practices of second language assessment while considering its impact on society. Read separately, each part addresses a different aspect of the field. Part I deals with the conceptual foundations of second language assessment with chapters on the purposes of assessment, and standards and frameworks, as well as matters of scoring, quality assurance, and test validation. Part II addresses the theory and practice of assessing different second language skills including aspects like intercultural competence and fluency. Part III examines the challenges and opportunities of second language assessment in a range of contexts. In addition to chapters on second language assessment on a national scale, there are chapters on learning-oriented assessment, as well as the uses of second language assessment in the workplace and for migration. Part IV examines a selection of important issues in the field that deserve attention. These include the alignment of language examinations to external frameworks, the increasing use of technology to both deliver and score second language tests, the responsibilities associated with assessing test takers with special needs, the concept of 'voice' in second language assessment, and assessment literacy for teachers and other test and score users.
The present study explores the relationship between Foreign Language Enjoyment (FLE) and Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety (FLCA) and a number of teacher-centered variables within the Spanish ...classroom context. Participants were 210 former and current learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) from all over Spain who filled out an online questionnaire with Likert scale items. A moderate negative relationship emerged between FLE and FLCA. Participants who had an L1 English speaker as a teacher reported more FLE and less FLCA than those with a foreign language user of English. Teacher characteristics predicted close to 20% of variance in FLE but only 8% of variance in FLCA. The strongest positive predictor of FLE was a teacher's friendliness while a teacher's foreign accent was a weaker negative predictor. Teacher-centered variables predicted much less variance for FLCA. Participants experienced more FLCA with younger teachers, very strict teachers, and teachers who did not use the foreign language much in class. The findings confirm earlier research that FLE seems to be more dependent on the teachers' pedagogical skills than FLCA.
To what extent do our accents determine the way we are perceived by others? Is a foreign accent inevitably associated with social stigma? Accent is a matter of great public interest given the impact ...of migration on national and global affairs, but until now, applied linguistics research has treated accent largely as a theoretical puzzle. In this fascinating account, Alene Moyer examines the social, psychological, educational and legal ramifications of sounding 'foreign'. She explores how accent operates contextually through analysis of issues such as: the neuro-cognitive constraints on phonological acquisition, individual factors that contribute to the 'intractability' of accent, foreign accent as a criterion for workplace discrimination, and the efficacy of instruction for improving pronunciation. This holistic treatment of second language accent is an essential resource for graduate students and researchers interested in applied linguistics, bilingualism and foreign language education.
This study presents a cross‐sectional and longitudinal analysis of how 108 high school students in English as a foreign language (EFL) classrooms enhanced the comprehensibility of their second ...language (L2) speech according to different motivation, emotion, and experience profiles. Students’ learning patterns were primarily associated with their emotional states (anxiety vs. enjoyment) and secondarily with their motivational dispositions (clear vision of ideal future selves). Students’ anxiety together with weaker Ideal L2 Self related negatively to their performance at the beginning of the project—performance that they had achieved after several years of EFL instruction. Students’ enjoyment together with greater Ideal L2 Self predicted the extent to which they practiced and developed their L2 speech within the 3‐month framework of the project. Results suggest that more frequent L2 use with positive emotions directly impacts acquisition, which may in turn lead to the lessening of negative emotions and better long‐term L2 comprehensibility.
Open Practices
This article has been awarded an Open Materials badge. Study materials are publicly accessible in the IRIS digital repository at http://www.iris-database.org. Learn more about the Open Practices badges from the Center for Open Science: https://osf.io/tvyxz/wiki.
The Central Asian republics represent an interesting yet little-studied space for researching the interplay between language learning motivation (LLM), multiculturalism, and multilingualism given ...their cultural and linguistic diversity and official promotion of multilingualism and positive multicultural attitudes through language learning initiatives in schools and universities. This article reports on a questionnaire study that investigated the LLM of 235 university students in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, including their integrativeness and international posture. The students were learning Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, Russian, Spanish, and Turkish, with a majority of them learning two or more languages concurrently. The study also explored their views regarding the benefits of being multilingual and the extent to which their level of multilingualism, both formally and natively acquired, affected their multicultural attitudes and levels of prejudice towards outgroups. The findings revealed statistically significant gender differences in how the participants viewed the benefits of being multilingual, as well as statistically significant relationships between their levels of natively acquired multilingualism and their multicultural attitudes and levels of prejudice towards outgroups. International posture and integrativeness, meanwhile, were found to be distinct concepts with little overlap.
Although many educators have recently discussed the positive effects of flipped learning, there is little empirical evidence about whether this approach can actually promote students' English ...learning. This study was undertaken in four sections of the same College English 1 (El) course over two consecutive semesters at a South Korean university. A total of 79 students enrolled in the El course participated in the study. Of the participants, 39 learned English using a communicative language teaching approach, whereas 40 studied English in a flipped learning manner. Data were gathered from the students' achievements in three major tasks, their responses to three surveys, and the instructor's notes on the students' engagement in the process of their English learning. Findings demonstrate that the students in the flipped classroom achieved higher average scores in their final three tasks than those in the non-flipped classroom, but only the final examination mean score indicated statistical significance. However, surveys indicated that most students in this study seemed to enjoy learning English in a flipped learning environment. Also, the instructor found the students in the flipped classroom to be more engaged in the learning process than those in the non-flipped classroom. Pedagogical implications for effective English teaching are discussed.
Teacher enthusiasm is attracting growing attention in educational and learner psychology research. There is evidence that teacher enthusiasm is contagious in class and positively affects student ...emotions. Their fundamental role in shaping student engagement has also been well documented. However, the links – between teacher enthusiasm and student emotions, and between student emotions and engagement – remain underexplored in instructed second language acquisition. The present study adopted a mixed-method approach to examine the complex relationships between perceived teacher enthusiasm, emotions (enjoyment and boredom), and social-behavioral learning engagement among 2,002 learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) from 11 universities in China. Quantitative analyses showed small to large correlations between perceived teacher enthusiasm, enjoyment, boredom, and social-behavioral learning engagement. In addition, student enjoyment and boredom were found to co-mediate the relationship between perceptions of teacher enthusiasm and student social-behavioral engagement in English classes. Qualitative interviews with nine students provided insights into the potential causes of the statistical patterns. Theoretical and pedagogical implications are discussed, followed by directions for future research.
This cross‐sectional study investigated the impact of length of instruction, out‐of‐school exposure to foreign language input, and gender on learners’ receptive vocabulary knowledge in two foreign ...languages: French (first foreign language) and English (second foreign language). The findings suggest that, although length of instruction correlated positively with vocabulary knowledge in English and French, the gains remained modest when out‐of‐school exposure to the foreign language input was limited. Despite fewer years of English instruction, participants’ vocabulary knowledge in English was considerably larger than their French vocabulary knowledge, which can be explained by their large amounts of out‐of‐school exposure to English language input. Participants’ online activities in particular had a positive effect on their vocabulary knowledge in English. Although gender influenced participants’ engagement with online activities in English, gender did not have a direct effect on their vocabulary knowledge, as the structural equation modeling analysis showed.
Open Practices
This article has been awarded an Open Materials badge. The test materials are publicly accessible via the IRIS database at https://www.iris-database.org: The English VocabLab test (https://www.iris-database.org/iris/app/home/detail?id=york%3a933919) and The French VocabLab test (https://www.iris-database.Org/iris/app/home/detail?id=york%3a933777). Learn more about the Open Practices badges from the Center for Open Science: https://osf.io/tvyxz/wiki.
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